John’s Blog - Coast To Coast

Josh Hancock wasn’t a star, but he was living EVERY child and young man’s dream - he was a major league baseball player… Hancock was a role player, someone who often times had to do the thankless job of pitching in blowout games… Nonetheless, he was very happy to be there and as a member of the 2006 World Champion St. Louis Cardinal baseball team he had that precious ring that no one could ever take away from him. His numbers weren’t spectacular, but they were good enough last year (a 4.09 ERA and a very impressive 1.21 WHIP) that I had kept a close eye on him in spring training with the injury problems of closer Jason Isringhausen… He had good enough stuff to someday be an effective closer. Sadly, that day will never come as Hancock was tragically killed early yesterday morning in a single car accident with a stopped tow truck. He was only 29 years old.

The moment yesterday afternoon in Orlando International Airport when I first heard about this tragedy, I harkened back to June 22, 2002 when another Cardinals pitcher, Darryl Kile, died in his hotel room from a heart attack. He was only 33 years of age… Kile, as some of you will recall, was an All-Star pitcher with the Houston Astros. He won 19 games in 1997 with a 2.57 ERA - numbers that were in the top 3 in the league in both categories. Kile was exiled to Colorado in 1998 and 1999 and his numbers, like most all pitchers who go there, suffered a lot those two years. Kile was signed by the Cardinals in 2000 and was an All-Star again that year, producing his only 20 win season.

I still remember that day in 2002 that Kile was taken from us… and it REALLY shook me as he was almost a year and a half younger than me when he passed on and he was in the PRIME of his career! I had literally also been in my new townhouse for all of a week when this happened, so it’s something that I just don’t forget. Hancock never reached the level of success that Kile did, but he was a very integral part of the Cardinals bullpen, being used mostly as a situational and long reliever. As I mentioned above, Josh often had the thankless job of “mopping up” in games that were blowouts… His final appearance just hours earlier before he was taken from us was in one of those “mop up” sitations… Josh came in to pitch with the Cardinals trailing 7-0 in the 6th inning… He pitched three effective innings in that last game - striking out two batters and allowing a run, while retiring the final four batters he faced…

Tragedies like this always put things into perspective and show us just how precious and fragile this life is. Remember your loved ones at this time… tell them how you feel about them. Give them a call, give them a hug… tell them that you love them. Tonight, please keep the Hancock family and the St. Louis Cardinal family in your thoughts and prayers…

One thing you will quickly learn about Orlando if you spend ANY length of time there is that it’s very easy to get lost. I can’t tell you how many times we went the wrong way when just trying to get from point A to point B. On our final day of vacation, we were planning on heading down the Interstate 4 to Daytona Beach so that we could visit the Daytona International Speedway and pick up some NASCAR souvenirs… however, it didn’t work out that way as somehow we got headed the wrong way - towards Tampa Bay and Busch Gardens!!!

Visiting Busch Gardens would have been a great thing to do if we had a full day… but since Steve had to be at the airport at 3:30pm, and I had to turn the rental car back in by 5pm, we only had a couple of hours to spend at any one place. Daytona would have been perfect for that… As for Busch Gardens, we will just say it’s pretty expensive to visit. As a result we decided that we would visit some other interesting places which were in the suburb known as Plant City.

The first place in Plant City we visited was “Dinosaur World.” At first glance, it appears that Dinosaur World is just a place for kids, but once you walk inside the store that fronts the park entrance you discover that this is hardly the case. Fossils, artifacts, beautiful rocks and stones are all over the place to be seen. I picked up several beautiful Brazilian “tumbled agate” rocks and a few “agate slabs while there. The three of us also took several pictures with the dinosaur which guarded the entrance.

Since we only had about an hour left, we decided not to spend the $13 park entry fee to see inside. Amber had seen a sign for a winery as we entered the park and she had a strong urge to go visit, so visit we did! The winery we stopped by was called the Keel and Curley Winery. For only $3 we were allowed to sample as many of the 17 different wines that they had to offer and also take home a wine glass as a souvenir! What a deal! Since I was driving, I obviously couldn’t try all of the wines… I did sample a few that were outstanding including the Strawberry Riesling - a wine made up of Strawberries blended with Riesling grapes, making for a very sweet finish. We all also loved a dessert wine called the Florida Frost White - made up of 100% Vidal grapes. It was REALLY smooth! For more information, you can visit www.keelandcurleywinery.com

After visiting the winery, we had to head back up north and east to Orlando and the airport to drop off Steve. Amber and I grabbed some dinner before turning in the rental car. We then went our separate ways at the airport… As the pictures will attest to, we all had a GREAT time on our adventure to see the Dinosaurs and Spirits!

Saturday was a very fun day for me and my friends as we went to the Epcot Center. Steve and I arrived there just before 11am - just in time for the opening of the World Showcase portion of the theme park. There is also a Future World portion of the park, but the World Showcase was more interesting to us, so that’s where we decided to spend the day. Our friend Amber joined us a little after three in the afternoon.

When you enter the World Showcase, you feel like you’re stepping into a completely different world - make that 11 different worlds! The 11 different worlds I speak of are actually countries. You get to experience shops and attractions which you would find in each country. One of the most fun parts of the whole adventure is that the cashiers at each store are native to their countries, so you could often hear them speaking in their own native language.

We visited the countries all in the order they were presented to us, starting with Mexico… We then went into Norway where we took a boat voyage through the Viking era and a film which actually takes you back into those ancient times. It was very interesting… Amongst all of the countries represented though, China was definitely one of the most interesting. The “Reflections of China” circle-vision film is a MUST SEE for anyone visiting - you’ll be amazed by all of the beauty and history that they cram into a 14 minute film. I was also struck by all of the ancient Chinese traditions - particularly the “Tomb Warriors” which protect the dead so that they will be ready for the afterlife and the Chinese zodiac figures and the stories behind them…

After China, we stopped in Germany. Given that my heritage on my Dad’s side is German, it’s always interesting to see the traditions of my ancestors. As one would expect, beer and drinking were two of the main traditions prevalent. After passing though Germany, we hit Italy. Since I’m really into Italian food - particularly pizza and spaghetti - I looked forward to going there. We also enjoyed it in Italy because they had a free wine sampling booth!

Next there was the “American Adventure,” which gives a look at American History and culture… the highlight of this attraction was a 30 minute inspirational story of America and its people… Although it was interesting, the American Adventure almost seemed a little out of place amidst the rest of the Countries since most of us already know of America’s history…

After America, we visited Japan and Morocco… Although both of these countries were interesting, the ones that REALLY intested us were those that were left for the end: France, the United Kingdom and Canada…

Out of all of the countries we visited, the three of us definitely spent more time in France than anywhere else. There was a very well-done 20 minute film which celebrated the beautiful French countryside, along with several fine shops and dining places. It was also the one place in the park where I finally felt tempted to buy a few things.

After France, we ventured to the United Kingdom. We all were getting hungry by this time, so we decided to dine on some fish and chips at the “Yorkshire County Fish Shop.”

Our final was our neighbor to the north - Canada. A very well done 22 minute film called “O Canada!” gave a very interesting look into the beauty, culture and history of Canada.

Late in the evening (around 7:30 pm), the “swamp smell” began to invade the park. We all decided to go back and re-visit those places we enjoyed the most in the World Showcase… the theme park closed at 9pm. We all left having had a thoroughly enjoyable experience, wishing that we could someday see all of these places ourselves. For me, France and China seemed to be the most interesting places to see… Italy and the United Kingdom were also very interesting. Perhaps one of these days I will get to go visit and see the rest of them for myself!

Just a quick entry for my first full day of vacation in Orlando, Florida. The first thing I noticed about Florida was the temperature and humidity - 80 degrees with about 50% humidity when I arrived last night. Today, it was more like 95 with about the same humidity level. Shorts and a shirt along with sunglasses and A LOT of sunscreen are required!

As for the day, I was able to get a good night of sleep after yesterday’s crazyness… got up around 6:45, and just barely made the breakfast which was from 7-8am… there was an awards ceremony for all of the Verizon employees from 8-11:30 am, and then a lunch immediately after the ceremony. Two of my friends from work, Frank Tarentino and Erica Allison were amongst the winners of the big drawing… the prizes offered ranged from handheld portable computers to washer & dryers to BOSE stereo systems… some real nice stuff. I wish I would have been picked… then again, I’m not going to complain at all about two paid days off from work and a satellite radio with a free three month subscription…

The afternoon was spent socializing, taking LOTS of pictures and then getting some sun out by the pool… Around 4:30pm we all headed indoors and I took the shuttle to the airport so that I could get my rental car through Avis and then head off to the Best Western hotel here in Orlando (right by the airport)… Ironically, I’m on the highest floor again (just like in DC) and in room #6 again! In DC I was in room 706, here I’m in 506… My friend Steve is staying here with me in Orlando through the end of the day Sunday before we head back to LA…

Tonight we are just planning on relaxing - tomorrow will be fun though as several of us will be hooking up and heading off to the EPCOT Center in the DisneyWorld complex…

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Just wanted to add a little sports to the blog before I went… The Lakers, behind Kobe Bryant’s 45 points, took game 3 of their best of 7 series against the Phoenix Suns… hopefully this will be the start of something good… there’s nothing more that I would like than to see the Lakers somehow upset the Suns after getting so close last year…

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As you can tell by the title of my post for yesterday, something unxpected happened to me on my way to Orlando. Have you ever heard of something called “Murphy’s Law?” If it can go wrong it will go wrong? Well, that’s exactly what happened to me as I tried to leave DC and fly into Orlando. One other thing I want to add is that I really was having a hard time leaving DC - I had such a great time in my three days that I didn’t want to go, and I told several people this… I guess you really have to be careful what you wish for!!!

Getting to the Airport from my hotel was no problem… I arrived there around 7:45am - in plenty of time for my 8:45 flight out of DC which was to arrive at 9:55 am at New York’s La Guardia airport… I was supposed to then catch a flight out of New York to Orlando at 11:10am, arriving in Orlando at 1:50pm… As you’ll soon find out, things didn’t go according to plan. In the end, I really didn’t know whether to laugh or cry… trust me, you won’t believe my day!!!

The first sign of things to come was when we got a notice around 8:30am that the flight out of Orlando to NYC was delayed. At 9:30, we were told that there were some “electical problems” and the flight would leave at 10:00am… That wasn’t all that comforting and at that moment I kind of wished they would just cancel the flight or find us another plane. Around 10:30 they told us the flight was cancelled and that we would all need to go to the American Airlines counter and make new arrangements.

Less than an hour later (11:25 am) I was able to schedule a direct flight on US Airways from DC to Orlando for a 2:15pm departure time and a 4:26 arrival time… The woman at the terminal also told me that most likely my bag would be sent through US Air and that I didn’t need to do anything else… That was reassuring… and I was also happy about this as direct flights are just A LOT easier to deal with. Around 2pm, we come to find out that there are some “mechanical problems” with the plane and that they may need to change planes. Around 3pm, they told us we would be put in a different plane… unfortunately that plane was smaller than they plane we were supposed to be using by about 10 seats. What this meant is that there was a good chance I would miss this plane as well… and that’s exactly what happened as there was not enough room.

Not wanting to go through the baggage security check a third time, I decide I’ll just let US Air schedule me on the next plane to Orlando… as it turned out that plane would not be scheduled to leave until 7:35 pm… to arrive in Orlando at 9:45pm. Finally, at 7:20pm, I boarded the plane. We took off at 7:45pm - exactly 11 hours after I was originally scheduled to leave!!!

Needless to say, if I had known I would have been stuck in DC an extra day, I would have done something with it - go to the Smithsonian, take a boat tour on the Potomac, call my two friends/relatives I know there… something!!! So yes, I wasted an entire day at Reagan Airport. Most of the time was spent reading, writing and making LOTS of phone calls to friends and family… I also listened to my portable radio - it looks like an IPOD. I got VERY familiar with the DC FM radio stations during my four days here… but a lot more so while in the airport! For all of you Carrie Underwood fans out there, I heard her no less than eight times while in that airport for over 12 hours!

Now you would think that after I had arrived in Orlando at 9:40pm that the rest would and should go smoothly… WRONG! I was told that my bag would be at the US Airways terminal for pickup - either it was on an earlier plane, or it was on the same plane as mine. I checked through both areas and by 10:10pm, I went back to the baggage counter to put in a claim. Before I did that though, I asked the US Airways person at the counter if she could contact American Airlines just in case they had somehow gotten the bag back and sent it to Orlando… sure enough, this is exactly what happened… by 10:30pm, I finally had my bag!!!

Given that Verizon was paying for my transportation, there was supposed to be a shuttle waiting for me when I arrived. I told them that I should be there around 10pm and that I would be outside the US Airways terminal. A little after 10pm, I heard my name over the loudspeakers, but I couldn’t tell if it was for my luggage or the shuttle… I checked with several people that worked at the airport and no one else could tell me either…

I attempted to call my transportation people several times, but I had no luck geting someone to pick me up. I finally ended up having to talk to the “head person” in charge of the trip who advised me to just take a cab and that Verizon would reimburse me in the morning if I just brought the ticket… So, this morning I ended up getting a $63 reimbursement for my cab ride… I finally arrived in my hotel room at 12:37am (Friday morning)… I completely missed the corporate function happening Thursday night and the chance to go out to “Pleasure Island” where my friends were out celebrating… By 1am, I was thoroughly exhaused and in bed!!! Just happy to be there safe and sound…

I don’t know if any of you have ever experienced this kind of day traveling… regardless, it’s another experience I won’t soon forget!!! If any of you have similar experiences, please write back to me or eMail me… I’d love to compare stories!

Yesterday was just a very inspiring day for me here in DC - getting to see all of the monuments and Georgetown, and that spectacular view at night from my hotel room window just made it a very memorable day… well, so far Day 3 is off to an absolutely AMAZING start…

I got up a little before 6am ET to get ready to head off to offices of McKenna, Long & Aldridge for an 8am breakfast event. Now why would I be going to a Law office 3000 miles away from home while on vacation so early in the morning? Well, I found out Miss DC, Kate Michael, was going to be there speaking at a breakfast the University of Georgia’s “Bulldawg Breakfast Club” was holding in her honor so I just HAD to go! I got there very early - about 7:10am and then read while waiting for the guest of honor to arrive. Kate got there a little before 7:45… and I have to say, she is even more striking in person than in pictures. Needless to say, I just had to have my picture taken with her… I will post these as soon as I can get to a computer that will allow me to upload them.

Kate and I chatted before and during the breakfast about everything and anything - experiences with the Pageants, work, just a lot of different things. It was truly a joy to get to meet her - she’s truly one of the nicest, most honest and sincere people I’ve ever met.

The breakfast itself included about 15 people in all, most of whom were fellow University of Georgia alumni - I think I was the only “oddball” UCLA Bruin there. The hour and a half went by really fast, and Kate made us all laugh several times with her wit and humor. Kate also answered a lot of questions about her Literacy platform and about plans for her future. Kate is talented in many different areas, so there are almost endless possibilities as to what she will end up doing for work… It was truly a pleasure and honor to be there, and it’s an experience that I won’t soon forget…

After meeting with Kate, I took the bus to Georgetown and met up with my cousin Melinda who is a sophomore at Georgetown. Melinda and I shared lunch together on campus and she then gave me a full tour of the University Campus. Once again, I took lots of pictures and was truly impressed by all of the history here… The conversation was thoroughly enjoyable as we shared stories about our relatives and the different things to experience here in D.C.

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In sports, the Los Angeles Lakers were predictably routed by the Pheonix Suns last night and the World Champion Miami Heat fell to the Chicago Bulls again. Tonight, we will see if the Denver Nuggets can surprise the San Antonio Spurs again and we will also see if the the crippled Washington Wizards can somehow summon the strength to get a win over the Cleveland Cavaliers…

As for baseball notes, I’ve cut bait on two of my early “Diamonds In The Rough.” The first is Jorge Julio, who just has yet to find his good stuff this year form the Florida Marlins… the other is John Patterson of the Washington Nationals who is pitching like someone who isn’t 100% - his fastball, which normally tops out in the mid 90’s is peaking in the upper 80’s and his breaking pitches simply don’t have the bite they normally do… Patterson was someone I really wanted on my teams this year, so it’s tough to cut bait on him… the loss of velocity though makes the decision a little easier… Earlier in the season, I thought maybe the distraction of getting engaged to Kate’s predecessor, Miss 2005 D.C., Shannon Schambeau may have been the cause of his pitching woes… I don’t think that’s the case now.

In addition to Patterson, Ryan Zimmerman is another National that is off to a very slow start with just a .233 batting average as I write this… Ryan appears to be going through the dreaded “softmore slump”… Hopefully he will to be the 3rd baseman that everyone wanted so badly on my their fantasy teams this year. The hardest thing about drafting players for fantasy baseball teams are the intangibles… the things which on the surface you wouldn’t think should have an effect on a player, but for some reason they end up causing the player to either achieve well above expectations or well below them.

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One last thing… wasn’t it nice to not see Sanjaya on American Idol last night? I was so thankful that he was finally voted off the show last week. Nothing against him, but the bottom line is that he couldn’t sing very well and American Idol is a singing contest… kudos to him though for parlaying his stage presence and image into something marketable… I definitely don’t think you’ve seen the last of him… If I were to pick a winner now, it would be Melinda Doolittle. She remains a steady rock - consistently great, while the others always seem to be up or down. Lakiesha Jones (whom I considered the early favorite) had her third consecutive sub-standard performance last night. Will she be voted off this week??? It just might happen… tune in to find out… Two time Grammy winner Carrie Underwood will be amongst the singing guests!

Take care & hope you’re all doing well!

John

I awoke at 6:30 am, in time to see that the weather was not as clear as it was on Monday… the forecast was for a chance of thunderstorms… I grabbed a quick cup of coffee before getting ready, and then I headed down to the cafe for a breakfast of french toast, scrambled eggs, fruit, milk and some more coffee… Yes, I live on caffiene a lot of the time!

A little before 9:15am, I headed South towards the Navy Yard Metro Station. I got there quickly, no sooner to find out it was closed, so I headed to the next nearest one - the Capitol South Metro Station, which was just about a mile away from the Navy Yard…

I took the Metro to the Federal Yard and first explored the Washington Monument… then I visited the Lincoln Memorial and then almost circled the White House… A few people were gracious enough to take pictures of me in front of some of these places, and I’ll be posting them just as soon as I can use a computer with a USB port…

After stopping by the White House, I caught the Metro again and got off at the Foggy Bottom GWU stop… I walked from the George Washington University area straight to Georgetown and was really amazed by the beauty of everything here. For those of you that don’t know, Georgetown was established in 1751 and is the hometown of the Georgetown Hoyas - a great scholastic instution which is also very well known for their men’s basketball program. This year, they made yet another final four appearance, losing to eventual runner-up, Ohio State.

While walking the streets of Georgetown (and also trying to hook up with a cousin of mine who is an Undergraduate here), I stopped several places… At 1pm, a place called the Pizzeria Paradiso piqued my interest, so I had a nice pizza lunch there… I’ll probably spend the rest of the afternoon trying to get together with my cousin before heading back to hotel…

After being here just a little more than 24 hours, there are two things I do know for sure now. One is that I REALLY LOVE this city and the second is that I just have to come back… I’m already planning out my second trip here so that I can visit the places that I will be missing this time…

One other thing I would like to say, and that’s a big THANK YOU to all of the residents of DC and the visitors who have been so nice to me… You all have truly added so much to this amazing experience! This morning, while getting off the Metro and headed for the Washington Monument, I just happened to see a young man dressed in a UCLA Bruin shirt… being a HUGE Bruin fan of course, I just had to engage him in conversation… It turned out his name was Chris and he graduated from UCLA 11 years after I did. Chris was now a graduate student at Georgetown. Chris also had several members of his family with him, and they almost were able to get me into the White House. They had two extra tickets, but of course with the security measures here there was no way I would have been able to use the tickets… Needless to say, the topic of college basketball came up when Chris and I talked… and, like me, he picked a UCLA-Georgetown championship… I guess he was feeling the same way I was that Saturday night after both of the teams I was pulling for lost!

That would be about it for now… hopefully I will be able to hook up with my cousin before heading back to my room…

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Of course, I have to post a little sports stuff here… Not surprisingly, the Lakers and Wizards both lost on Sunday, and the Denver Nuggets (surprisingly to some but not to me) took game one from the San Antonio Spurs in their series. The BIG shocker was the Golden State Warriors taking a game on the road against the number one seed in the West, the Dallas Mavericks…

In baseball, A-Rod is just continuing to go crazy… Mr. Rodriguez slammed two more homers last night in the Yankees 10-8 loss to the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. A-Rod has now tied Albert Pujols’ major league record of 14 homers in April… I hope he continues to produce great numbers, and that the Yankees continue their losing ways.

Well, as you can all see, I have finally been able to access the internet and post a new blog. I had an entry all set up for yesterday, but I was not able to post either using my laptop or the “High Speed Internet Access” that is provided where I’m staying - the Best Western on I St. South & Madison here in DC.

Needless to say, I wanted to tell you all about my first day here in DC… so I decided that I’d be resourceful and while visiting Georgetown today I would go to the on-campus Library here…

My trip on Sunday night got off to a little bit of a rocky start - my plane, which was supposed to leave LAX for JFK at 11:20pm PT the night of the 22nd, didn’t leave until 1:20am PT the morning of the 23rd. Yes, we were running 2 hours late! Considering that my connecting flight out of JFK to Reagan Airport (DCA) here in DC was scheduled to depart at 9:40am ET (6:40am PT). Fortunately, the pilot made up some time from LAX to JFK and we ended up arriving just a little before 8:50am ET - I still had over 50 minutes to get to my plane. Then another problem developed - they couldn’t decide how to “deplane” us! It took them a half hour to get us off the plane. At 9:20am, I rushed toward security, quickly ran my stuff through, and headed off to catch the train which would take me halfway around the airport from the Delta terminal to the American Airlines terminal. I literally had to run all the way there to catch my plane, but I made it!

Once I got on the plane to DC, everything started to go perfectly. A smooth flight into DC and it took me only five minutes from the time I was off the plane until I was headed to my hotel room. They allowed me to check in over 3 hours early and with that, I unpacked and got myself together for a day of exploring!

As I looked out the window of my 7th floor room assignment at the Best Western, I pulled open the drapes to what was an amazing view of the Capitol Building on The Hill. As I turned to the left, I saw the Washington Monument jutting out from the West. Only an hour after I had unpacked my things, I set out afoot to explore the great city of Washington, DC! I had planned day one of my stay as just a day to roam around the city, just going whereever I felt led to…

Not surprisingly, my first stop was the aforementioned Capitol building… it’s quite a breaktaking sight to see - though probably not as breaktaking as the amazing cherry blossoms which I could not escape the sight of. I then headed west, passing through the U.S. Botanical Gardens and then past the American Indian Museum - which was unfortunately closed, and the through the Smithsonian. I headed north to the American Museum of Natural History and then east past the Ronald Reagan Building. I then headed northeast, finally ending up just west of Union Station.

From the Union Station area, I headed northwest towards DuPont Circle. I figured that since I would be out that direction on Wednesday, it would be a good place to see… After nearly three hours of almost straight walking, I finallt decided to stop and have dinner and a drink over at the Bistrot Du Coin. The service was excellent, and the food even more so there. After a lot of deliberation, I finally decided upon having steak with a glass of red wine… The steak was tender and moist and the sauce was also excellent… I’d strongly recommend the Bistrot du Coin to anyone visiting the DC area. Around 5pm, I headed back home, stopping at a couple of CVS stores to pick up a few supplies that didn’t make in onto the plane… Being a current Verizon employee, I did have to stop by the Verizon Center and take some pictures there. I hope the Wizards can have some better luck there when they play on Saturday…

By 7pm I was in my hotel room and pretty exhausted from the 10 or so miles of walking I did. As the sun went down and the night took effect, the view of the city became even more amazing… I’ve seen the Capitol Building all lit up at night on TV thousands of times before, but there is just something REALLY special about seeing it in person… The same can be said for the Washington Monument… While trying unsuccessfully to post here last night, I had the beauty of these two landmarks to stare at and admire… what a sight to behold!!! I was finally able to contact a few friends late in the night - about 12:30am ET and let them know I was OK… by 1am ET I was in bed, just very thankful that I made it here safely, and that my first day here just made me thirsting for more!!!

This is a morning I’ve been looking forward to for quite a while now - my vacation and trip to the East coast begins today! I fly out of Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) at 11:20pm PT tonight and will end up going through JFK Airport in New York before I end up at Reagan Airport and Washington DC at 11am ET on Monday morning. There is so much to do and see in DC; I’ve simply been overwhelmed by my family and friends with suggestions as to what to do and see during my stay there… Of course, some of the places suggested are very familiar - the White House, the Washington Monument, the Smithsonian, the Lincoln Memorial and the Library of Congress are amongst those places suggested to me multiple times. My itinerary is pretty well set - though if something comes up, I’m flexible to change it. I will have high speed internet access from my hotel room in DC, so I will hopefully be blogging daily from there. By the way, I asked for a room up high so hopefully I will have a nice view of the city from where I’m staying - not that I expect to be there much.

On the morning of the 26th, at 8:45 am, I fly out of Reagan Airport and down to Orlando (via LaGuardia in NYC) for the second leg of my trip. As some of you know, I work for Verizon and originally was only going to be in Florida for two days. The reason I was going to Florida for work was that I was one of the top sales associates in my region last year. It’s quite an honor to be chosen and rewarded for all of the hard work that I put in. Of course, since there is so much to see and do in the Orlando area, I just had to extend my vacation a couple of days - so I’ll be there through the 29th. There will be a Verizon dinner and party for the sales associates from 7-10 PM on Thursday night, the 26th. The main recognition and awards ceremony will be from 8am - 12pm the next morning, followed by a lunch buffet which ends at 1:30 PM. Several of my friends have decided to extend their stay by a couple of days as well, so I will be doing a lot of stuff with them. As for places I do know I will be visiting, the one I will be seeing for sure is the Epcot Center. At least four of us will be visiting the Epcot Center on the 28th… I leave Orlando on the 29th at 7:50 PM ET, and should arrive back at LAX around 11:45 PM PT. I will have high speed internet access from Orlando too, so I should be able to blog daily from there as well!

Needless to say, I plan on taking lots of pictures of the places I visit and the things and people I see. I truly can’t wait to see DC and Orlando!

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Just a little bit o’Sports today… How about Mr. Cole Hamels of the Philadelphia Phillies? Kudos to him on a 15 strikeout performance in a complete game 4-1 victory over the Cincinnati Reds. Hamels was another of my draft day targets this year, so I was glad to see him do so well. The Los Angeles Dodgers got a walk-off grand slam from catcher Russell Martin in the 10th inning of a thrilling (though poorly played) 7-3 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates. Big Papi went deep as the Red Sox beat the Yankees again 7-5…

In auto racing, Jeff Gordon finally got his first victory of the 2007 season and also his first victory ever in Phoenix as he won the Subway Fresh Fit 500. Particularly moving was what happened afterwards - Gordon tied the late Dale Earnhardt, Sr. on the all-time win list with his 76th NASCAR victory. Gordon was given a flag with Earnhardt’s #3 on it immediately after the race ended and he drove around the track on his victory lap, holding the flag up outside his window as he paid tribute to the senior Earnhardt. It was truly a special moment.

As I flipped back and forth amongst the four baseball games available to me last night, the one game which got most of my attention was the Red Sox-Yankees game out at Fenway Park… Is there a bigger rivalry in all of baseball??? I doubt it. Last year, the Red Sox Nation was stung as the Yankees demolished them in a 5 game series sweep in mid-August, basically finishing their season and playoff aspirations.

So far, 2007 has been a little different… The Red Sox are in first place with a league-best 10-5 record with the Yankees sitting two games back. The Yankees could be further back if not for a miracle which happened two nights ago… They looked done on that night, trailing 6-2 with two outs and no one on in the bottom of the 9th. An amazing rally saw them score six runs off Cleveland Indian closer Joe Borowski - capped by an Alex Rodriguez 3-run homer.

Last night, the tables were turned on the Yankees by those aforementioned Red Sox. The Yanks were up 6-2 in the bottom of the 8th before the Sox rallied for five runs, including two off closer Mariano Rivera, to take a 7-6 lead. Hideki Okajima closed out the game in the 9th, pitching through the meat of the Yankee order - Jeter, Abreu and the red-hot A-Rod (who homered TWICE more) - to record a save.

For some reason, the Red Sox truly seem to have Rivera’s number. Rivera, also known as “The Sandman,” has now blown 10 saves in 34 opportunities the past seven seasons (2001-2007) against the Red Sox… that’s only a conversion rate of 70.59%. Against the other 29 MLB teams over that time, he is 244 for 264 - a stellar 92.42% conversion rate. Why do the Red Sox seem to have him figured out, while the rest of the league doesn’t? If you have a theory, please let me know… I really can’t explain it - it’s way beyond a statistical aberration at this point!

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We are nearly three weeks into the baseball season now and look who has the best record of anyone - it’s the Los Angeles Dodgers! At 12-5, the Dodgers are doing as well as advertised in the spring. While lacking much of a power game, they have won with their bread and butter - good pitching and speed on offense… a 2.94 team ERA is 2nd in the NL, while their 17 stolen bases lead the circuit.

Injuries and other things seem to be taking their toll on some of the players I thought would do really well this year. Adam LaRoche of the Pittsburgh Pirates is only hitting .100 (5 for 50) with 2 homers so far in 2007.. From all reports, LaRoche has suffered from back pain and stiffness the entire season. With 20 strikeouts in only 50 at bats, it appears to really be affecting his ability to hit the ball. Perhaps a DL stint is in his future. John Patterson of the Washington Nationals is another player I thought would do very well this year. Traditionally a pitcher with good control and a great strikeout to walk (K/BB) ratio, Patterson has been anything but that so far this year. In 2007, Patterson has walked 14, while only striking out eight in 18 innings. That’s a 0.57 K/BB ratio. Compare that to last year where he had only 9 walks and 42 strikeouts in 40 2/3 innings (an outstanding 4.67 K/BB ratio). I haven’t heard anything about an injury yet with JP, but something clearly isn’t right with him…

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The NBA Playoffs start today with four first round games… the most intriguing game today will probably be the game between the 2005-2006 Miami Heat against the Chicago Bulls. Though the Bulls had a better record by five games, the World Champion Heat will probably be favored to win it. Injury plagued for most of the season, the Heat are now close to healthy. Anytime you can put a healthy Dwayne Wade and Shaquille O’Neal on the court, you’re a force to be reckoned with…

Tomorrow’s games will be more interesting for me than today’s as the Los Angeles Lakers will take on the Phoenix Suns and the injury-depleted Washington Wizards will take on the Cleveland Cavaliers… it will truly take a miracle for the Lakers and Wizards to take more than one game in either of their series, let alone pull off the upsets and advance to the second round. I look for the most interesting game tomorrow to be the one between the Denver Nuggets and the San Antonio Spurs. The Nuggets are a VERY hot team at the moment, winning 10 of their final 11 games including a 100-77 win in San Antonio this past Wednesday to close out the season. Now that superstars Carmelo Anthony and Allen Iverson seem to have developed a chemistry between each other, the Nuggets have an excellent chance of beating the Spurs, and possibly advancing to the conference finals.

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